Abstract

X‐ray computer
microtomography using synchrotron light (SRμCT) has proven to be a highly powerful method in many fields of modern research as medicine, biology and material science. Presently used instruments, however, are limited to about 1μm resolution at a total efficiency of a few percent, due to the properties of the scintillator, the optical light transfer, and the CCD granularity. To overcome these limitations we have realized a novel approach based on extremely asymmetrical Bragg reflection. Our instrument, the “Bragg Magnifier” combines two asymmetrically cut Si crystals, mounted close to each other on two rotation and adjustment units. It is installed at the Materials Science Beamline of the Swiss Light Source (SLS). It operates at favorably high energies between 21 keV and 23 keV. In a first experiment using a human bone trabecula a two‐dimensional magnification factor of 100×100 was achieved yielding a spatial resolution of 140nm.